The City of Cape Town will implement water disruptions in several areas between Wednesday, 26 October 2022 and Thursday. Here’s why.
Why is the City closing taps on Wednesday?
In a statement, the City explained the water disruption was necessary to conduct zero-pressure testing and maintenance on critical pipelines as part of what it terms the Water Demand Management Strategy.
“Managing water pressure more effectively reduces the possibility of pipe bursts and water wastage,” the City noted.
In Tokai, zero-pressure tests done on the main water supply to the Steenberg Golf Estate will allow the City to assess whether “any unmapped inflows need to be considered before installing smart pressure-reducing valves.”
Moreover, in Sarepta and Ounooiensfontein, water supply will be disrupted in several areas due to “an urgent installation of a control valve on the 250mm diameter water main.”
A section of Litha Park, Khayelitsha, will also be affected, as maintenance workers need to examine “the water supply network to determine the possible extent of the impact on consumers when they do the actual shutoff to replace a faulty 450mm diameter valve on the pipeline.”
These Cape Town areas will be affected by water disruptions
The areas earmarked for water disruptions will be impacted at different times.
Here is a look at the Cape Town areas that will be affected by water disruptions from Wednesday, 26 October 2022:
Lotus River, Ottery, Parkwood Estate, Grassy Park, Fairways, Plumstead, Wynberg
In this region, the City will conduct a ‘dummy’ shutdown of water supply from 10:00 until 15:00 on Wednesday, 26 October 2022.
“This dummy shutdown will assist the planning teams in assessing the capability of the water supply network for rerouting of water supply in preparation for an actual shutdown, before making water tankers and standpipes available.
“This is a very important exercise as it provides an indication of the extent of the impact and what mitigation measures need to be implemented and what the possibilities are to maintain the water supply to these areas,”Acting Mayoral Committee Member for Water and Sanitation Siseko Mbandezi explained.
Steenberg Road, Tokai Road, Zwaanswyk Road
Zero pressure testing done at the Steenberg Golf Estate will impact water supply at properties situated on the roads mentioned above from 22:00 on Wednesday, 26 October 2022, until 04:00 on Thursday, 27 October 2022.
“Zero-pressure testing is part of the installation process for pressure management technology. Tests are done to see if any unmapped inflows need to be considered before installing smart pressure-reducing valves,” the City added.
Sarepta and Ounooiensfontein
The urgent installation of a control valve on the 250mm diameter water main to Sarepta and Ounooiensfontein means the area will be without supply from 20:30 on Thursday, 27 October 2022, until 02:00 on Friday, 28 October 2022.
“This work will afford the operations team to reduce the affected areas in the event of a pipe burst in the future, thereby reducing the number of consumers inconvenienced,” the City said in a statement.
Litha Park, Khayelitsha
Water supply was cut off on Ntlazane Street in Litha Park from 09:00 on Wednesday, 26 October 2022, and is expected to return at 15:00. The supply disruption is part of preparation work done to “determine the possible extent of the impact on consumers when they do the actual shutoff to replace a faulty 450mm diameter valve on the pipeline. “